James Weatherhead

Background and career

James Leslie Weatherhead was born in Dundee on 29 March 1931. He was a graduate of the University of Edinburgh, where he was President of the Students' Representative Council.

He was minister at Trinity Church, Rothesay, Isle of Bute until 1969, when he became minister at the Old Parish Church, Montrose. He demitted his charge in 1985 to become Principal Clerk to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, a post he held until his retirement in 1996. He was succeeded as Principal Clerk by the Reverend Dr Finlay Macdonald.

During his Moderatorial year he sparked controversy over a sermon he gave in St Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh, where spoke in support of Dr David Jenkins (the former Bishop of Durham) in his interpretation of the account of the virgin birth of Jesus Christ.

He appointed a Chaplain to the Queen in 1991 and was awarded the CBE in the 1997 New Year Honours for ecumenical work and public service.

Following the end of his Moderatorial year, his official title was the Very Reverend Dr James Leslie Weatherhead CBE MA LLB DD. He died on 20 May 2017.